Microsoft PowerPoint

2022: Block macros by default

On February 8, 2022, it became known that Microsoft will block the execution of VBA macroscripts in five Microsoft Office applications by default. Since the beginning of April 2022, users of Microsoft Access, Excel, PowerPoint, Visio and Word will not be able to include macro scripts in unreliable documents downloaded from the Internet. More details here.

2021

Attacks through the spread of infected files PowerPoint account for 1% of malware

On February 20, 2022, HP Inc. announced the release of the HP Wolf Security Threat Insights Report, in which it analyzed the cyber attacks that occurred in Q4 2021 . After studying the threats that managed to bypass the security systems and reached the end devices of users, HP Wolf Security experts made conclusions about the methods of attacks used by cybercriminals.

Announces a tool that turns a Word document into a presentation PowerPoint

At the end of March 2021, Microsoft announced the launch of a tool for the web version of Word, which allows users to convert text documents into PowerPoint presentations. The new conversion feature, which was previously available only to Office Insider members, is now available to all Microsoft 365 subscribers. More details here.

2020: Determinant of Monotony of the Speech and Completion of the Speech functions in PowerPoint Presenter Coach

On March 30, 2019, Microsoft announced that from April 21, Office 365 home subscriptions will be called Microsoft 365, as well as include updated features and services. Microsoft introduced two functions in the Presenter Coach PowerPoint: monotone pitch and Speech Refinement. More details here.

2019

The head of Amazon banned PowerPoint in the company

At the end of October 2019, it became known that Jeff Bezos banned the use of PowerPoint at Amazon meetings and thereby increased employee efficiency by 25%. More details here.

PowerPoint makes people dumber and prevents them from focusing

In August 2019, researchers again drew the attention of the general public to the meaninglessness of presentations PowerPoint in the form they are still used.

Some world-famous businessmen, such as Jeff Bezos, Jack Dorsey and Mark Kuban, avoid using PowerPoint because they consider this program ineffective. At least two peer-reviewed studies support the point of view of entrepreneurs.

PowerPoint may contribute to reduced brain activity in humans

A study conducted at the University of New South Wales in 2007 by the famous psychologist John Sweller showed that showing an audience of slides with words that the lecturer simultaneously utters does not concentrate the attention of listeners, but rather disperses. When the lecturer throws several basic thoughts into the audience and then speaks them, he almost certainly guarantees that his words will be quickly forgotten. Not because the topic of the lecture turned out to be boring, but because people cannot read and listen at the same time, Sweller explains.

A study published in August 2019 by Harvard University also proves that the concept of PowerPoint is wrong. The online audience assesses the effectiveness of presentations PowerPoint along with oral lectures without accompanying visual aids. Presentations can PowerPoint even make listeners more stupid, since "the famous simplicity and effectiveness of PowerPoint actually mask a deeply disturbing but incomprehensible transformation in human communication," experts say.

In their opinion, slides, marked lists and catchy graphics, which are now taken for granted, promote a new "grammar" in which erroneous causality, careless logic, decontextualized data and seductive entertainment replaced traditional instruments of persuasion and argumentation, leads to language corruption.^[1]

Integration with Samsung Galaxy Note10

On August 8, 2019, the companies Microsoft Samsung announced the development of a long-term strategic partnership in the field of innovation. Starting Samsung Galaxy Note10 with performance applications and Microsoft services will be are integrated in the products of the line, including the automatic synchronization function with Link PERSONAL COMPUTER to,,, Windows OneDrive as well as Outlook, and Word Excel PowerPoint. More. here

Four Extensions for the Design Tool

On June 19, 2019, Microsoft introduced four extensions for the Designer tool in PowerPoint. They all work on the basis of artificial intelligence technology and automatically generate design options, significantly simplifying and optimizing work processes.

According to the company, "Designer" appeared in the application in 2018, and by April 2019, 1 billion slides were created with it.

Artificial intelligence in PowerPoint will help employees:

• Find ideas for design faster. Now that you add keywords to an empty presentation template, Power Point will offer a selection of high-quality photos that reflect the meaning of the message you entered, as well as style, theme, and color options. As of June 2019, the feature is already available for Office 365 subscribers and supports 20 languages, including Russian.
• Adhere to the corporate style. Company employees will receive recommendations from Constructor on making presentations in accordance with the company's corporate style, as well as taking into account previous stored templates. As of June 2019, the feature is available to Office 365 Insiders subscribers on Windows 10 and Mac. The Designer PowerPoint for Enterprise Templates is available in all languages that Office supports (including Russian).
• Illustrate your thoughts. The Perspective Engine feature in Constructor automatically recognizes large numbers that are difficult to perceive in the presentation and helps illustrate examples of them. This allows you to make the information clearer, and the rapporteur to present his project more effectively. The extension was developed by the research department of Microsoft Research. As of June 2019, it is available for Office 365 subscribers in English. Support for other languages will appear later.
• It is more effective to prepare for the presentation of your project. Presenter Coach allows you to activate the performance rehearsal mode: during the presentation, the user sees on the screen statistics of speech speed, notifications of the use of parasite words and profanity, and even comments that he simply reads the text from the slide, if this happens. At the end of each rehearsal, the speaker receives a detailed report for additional practice. Presenter Coach will be available in English in the web version PowerPoint in the summer of 2019. The number of supported languages will soon be increased.